Tribal co-stewardship in practice: Emerging reflections from the field

Abstract

Forest and wildfire management in the 21 century requires working across jurisdictional boundaries and with various land management entities. One important group includes Native American tribes, sovereign nations with unique legal and political standings who possess deeply rooted, intergenerational knowledge of ecological processes and landscape dynamics. This research seeks to learn from and engage with existing landscape-scale efforts where tribes are leading the way in cross-boundary ecosystem collaboration. In this paper, we synthesize recent field experiences and identify emergent themes from two in-person engagements related to interorganizational dialogue and tribal co-stewardship, one in Colorado (2024) and the other in New Mexico (2025). From these gatherings, we found that a range of definitions exist for co-stewardship, and that shared lessons around Knowledge, Power, Practice, and Presence – “KP3” – can inform future intertribal collaborations focused on cross-boundary natural resource management. Knowledge includes developing a shared understanding of various terms and recognizes that tribes and non-tribal entities often have different perceptions of the land, as well as how management is implemented and for what benefits. Power references the two-fold problem of capacity, recognizing that sovereign-to-sovereign relationships take immense time, energy, and sustained commitment on both sides. Practice acknowledges systematic ‘growing pains’ and emerging legal, bureaucratic, and logistical challenges bound up with shifting agency priorities and the legacies of settler colonialism. Lastly, Presence refers to the long-standing stewardship of tribal nations and the positive work going on throughout Indian Country. By exploring themes that emerged from these two in-person engagements, this article aims to share the lessons of KP3 to inform and strengthen future landscape scale collaborations between federal agencies and Indigenous communities.

Citation

Martin, Jeff Vance; Hoagland, Serra J.; Hiney, Mary; Williams, Sidney Paulina; Baca, Morino M.; Franco, Emily; Oehlerich, Isabella; Calabaza, James. 2026. Tribal co-stewardship in practice: Emerging reflections from the field. From the Field – Elevating Indigenous Voices. 1 (1): 6-23.